Hello,
I have a Philips CD104 that won't play.
Its doesn't show an error as if there's no CD.
I have had a little look inside, im no expert on these things so have touched anything yet, just observed.
When I close the door without a CD I can see from an angle that there is laser light. I can also see the laser flexing as is trying to focus. The motor however doesn't spin at all.
Should the motor spin at this point ?
If I put a CD in it does not spin either.
If the motor is supposed to spin at this point where can I test that there is voltage being put on to the motor easily ? - looks tricky to me!
Any help EXTREMELY greatly appreciated 🙁
I dont want to throw this wonderful piece of engineering away.
Thankyou for reading,
Brian
I have a Philips CD104 that won't play.
Its doesn't show an error as if there's no CD.
I have had a little look inside, im no expert on these things so have touched anything yet, just observed.
When I close the door without a CD I can see from an angle that there is laser light. I can also see the laser flexing as is trying to focus. The motor however doesn't spin at all.
Should the motor spin at this point ?
If I put a CD in it does not spin either.
If the motor is supposed to spin at this point where can I test that there is voltage being put on to the motor easily ? - looks tricky to me!
Any help EXTREMELY greatly appreciated 🙁
I dont want to throw this wonderful piece of engineering away.
Thankyou for reading,
Brian
Normally, the motor should only start with a CD inserted.
Does the motor start when you manually turn the disk while the laser is still focusing?
/Hugo
Does the motor start when you manually turn the disk while the laser is still focusing?
/Hugo
Its tricky to get too, I have moved it a little bit and it makes the cd searching noises but NO it doesnt then start itself. 
I'll go and have a better go at your suggestion, thanks.
I'll go and have a better go at your suggestion, thanks.
Send me a pm, got cd-x manual (B&O) which is built on 104 technique. It also includes some faultfinding.
mvg,
mvg,
Does the laser move to the inner side of the cd at startup?
Did you get this problem suddenly or were there difficulties before?
Try cleaning the lens first. A cotton stick and some distilled water will do the job nicely.
/Hugo
Did you get this problem suddenly or were there difficulties before?
Try cleaning the lens first. A cotton stick and some distilled water will do the job nicely.
/Hugo
Right although its tricky because of all the steel, i have managed to spin the disc more.
It sounds just like my 471 Player in that its makes high pitch noises as if trying to locate the cd contents.
Motor doesnt continue itself though and then it stops making the noises as i spin it.
Yes it moves straight to the centre upon power up.
The lense looks clean to me, I dont have distilled water, do i want to touch that ?
I do have cotton sticks - was using one to spin the cd!lol
Help!
Thanks for helping.
Guido, will do, thanks.
It sounds just like my 471 Player in that its makes high pitch noises as if trying to locate the cd contents.
Motor doesnt continue itself though and then it stops making the noises as i spin it.
Yes it moves straight to the centre upon power up.
The lense looks clean to me, I dont have distilled water, do i want to touch that ?
I do have cotton sticks - was using one to spin the cd!lol
Help!
Thanks for helping.
Guido, will do, thanks.
still got your 104 ?
Hi Brian,
I have a 104 I have been playing with. One thing is that mine doesn't read any headers until it's been on for approx 45 minutes. yesterday I turned it on from cold and it just flashes
-- 00:00
then back to
--
I tried various disks and on one I got the error light- the rest just a momentary 00:00 then back to --
Anyway after about 30 minutes it reads everything. either it's a heat related problem (I notices when I removed the rear heatsink that the 2 decoder boards are badly warped from heat I guess. OR one of the laser caps is not performing untill the whole thing is warm.
Anyway - might be worth leaving it powered up for a good period (24 hours) then trying ?
Hi Brian,
I have a 104 I have been playing with. One thing is that mine doesn't read any headers until it's been on for approx 45 minutes. yesterday I turned it on from cold and it just flashes
-- 00:00
then back to
--
I tried various disks and on one I got the error light- the rest just a momentary 00:00 then back to --
Anyway after about 30 minutes it reads everything. either it's a heat related problem (I notices when I removed the rear heatsink that the 2 decoder boards are badly warped from heat I guess. OR one of the laser caps is not performing untill the whole thing is warm.
Anyway - might be worth leaving it powered up for a good period (24 hours) then trying ?
Hi Jives,
Thanks for the tip - i'll definetly give it a go.
I have also just got a CD100 to play with too!
It came with all the original manuals and demo cd and flashy pics etc.
"welcome to the world of digital audio"
Must have been amazing to get it in the early eighties.
Also you needed lots of money too!!
I'll get back to you,
Brian.
Thanks for the tip - i'll definetly give it a go.
I have also just got a CD100 to play with too!
It came with all the original manuals and demo cd and flashy pics etc.
"welcome to the world of digital audio"
Must have been amazing to get it in the early eighties.
Also you needed lots of money too!!
I'll get back to you,
Brian.
definitely worth trying. I have made a few tweaks having for the B&O CD-X manual from guido. The CD104 is virtually the same machine, just the PSU board layout appears different.
There are a few things I have found worth doing, though there is always the nagging doubt with such an old beast that one will be a "tweak to far".
I'm stunned how good these players sound. Makes you realise what a numbers game the last 20 years of CD development have been
There are a few things I have found worth doing, though there is always the nagging doubt with such an old beast that one will be a "tweak to far".
I'm stunned how good these players sound. Makes you realise what a numbers game the last 20 years of CD development have been
CD-104 Problem
Dear Sirs,
My 104 also got the same problem. It need to be warm up for about 30 minutes prior to run. Since it is about 20 years old, I don't want to let it turn on all the days. I'm afraid that the machine to be burn out from short circuit. Did you solve the "warmup" problem of your CD-104 at this moment?
Best Regards, KT
Dear Sirs,
My 104 also got the same problem. It need to be warm up for about 30 minutes prior to run. Since it is about 20 years old, I don't want to let it turn on all the days. I'm afraid that the machine to be burn out from short circuit. Did you solve the "warmup" problem of your CD-104 at this moment?
Best Regards, KT
Well I do leave mine on all the time. Either the warmup is needed because of a dry joint and some board flexing or because the 20+ year olds caps are not up to spec until warm.
I cannot really face the possibility of resoldering all joints and replacing all caps.
The laser is only engaged when a CD is in the drive and you press play, so leaving the CD player on is probably OK. In the UK we have fuses in the mains plugs , so it's always possible to fit a fuse that is very close to the tolerance of the kit - if you are worried about a short. I noticed there is also a fuse in the 104 which you can get at by removing the underside panel. It is down a small square hole on one side. Maybe a solution is to change this for a fast blow type and leave the plaver on permanently ?
I cannot really face the possibility of resoldering all joints and replacing all caps.
The laser is only engaged when a CD is in the drive and you press play, so leaving the CD player on is probably OK. In the UK we have fuses in the mains plugs , so it's always possible to fit a fuse that is very close to the tolerance of the kit - if you are worried about a short. I noticed there is also a fuse in the 104 which you can get at by removing the underside panel. It is down a small square hole on one side. Maybe a solution is to change this for a fast blow type and leave the plaver on permanently ?
Dear Sir,
According to your message under seperate subject "Philips CD104 tweaks", you did replaced the PSU capacitors, this remedies can't help to solve the warm up problem?
Frankly speaking, one of my old valve amplifier was burned by short circuits. The power transformer was melt down. My bed room was fill with smoke that I can't see anything, if I did not discovery the accident in time, my home would be burned also. I always turn off or un-plug all my audio equipment when they are not in used.
Regards, KT
According to your message under seperate subject "Philips CD104 tweaks", you did replaced the PSU capacitors, this remedies can't help to solve the warm up problem?
Frankly speaking, one of my old valve amplifier was burned by short circuits. The power transformer was melt down. My bed room was fill with smoke that I can't see anything, if I did not discovery the accident in time, my home would be burned also. I always turn off or un-plug all my audio equipment when they are not in used.
Regards, KT
Wow 😱 - I'm glad you discovered the problem before it was too late.
yes - I did replace some capacitors but not all. I replaced the 100uF smoothing caps after the regulators for the +/12 v supplies and also the +5v 100uF caps. I choose these as I had replacements lying around. I did not replace the big 3300uf supply caps. I suspect that the caps that might affect the warm up problem are on the laser mechanism board. I have read some articles by an engineer on how some cd players loose lasrer power and you have to adjust the trim pot to increase the current to the laser. However this can also cause the laser to die early. My suspicion is that the power supply to the laser boards becomes 'soft' as these caps have got old and needs 30 minutes to warm up to provide enough voltage to power the mechanism.
Do you hav the schematics ? I can send you the B & O CDX schematics that Guido sent me. They are almost identical to the CD104, the power supply board has a few changes but not many. I can email this to you but it is rather big (> 4Mb). let me know if you would like a copy
yes - I did replace some capacitors but not all. I replaced the 100uF smoothing caps after the regulators for the +/12 v supplies and also the +5v 100uF caps. I choose these as I had replacements lying around. I did not replace the big 3300uf supply caps. I suspect that the caps that might affect the warm up problem are on the laser mechanism board. I have read some articles by an engineer on how some cd players loose lasrer power and you have to adjust the trim pot to increase the current to the laser. However this can also cause the laser to die early. My suspicion is that the power supply to the laser boards becomes 'soft' as these caps have got old and needs 30 minutes to warm up to provide enough voltage to power the mechanism.
Do you hav the schematics ? I can send you the B & O CDX schematics that Guido sent me. They are almost identical to the CD104, the power supply board has a few changes but not many. I can email this to you but it is rather big (> 4Mb). let me know if you would like a copy
I've fixed several Maganavox 1040 (same as 104) with a simple trick. Philips used double sided boards _without_ plate thru holes... Instead the used press fit 'eyelets' in several spots to make connections from bottom to top. Find all those eyelets and SOLDER to pcb - ON BOTH sides. It has worked everytime I've tried it to non-reading and flaky players with that constuction.
I do agree with your analysis, "the power supply to the laser boards becomes 'soft' as these caps have got old and needs 30 minutes to warm up to provide enough voltage to power the mechanism". To replace the capcitors in the power rail might reduce the noise and hum by certain extend, but I don't think that these will help to solve the "warm up" problem.
Sure, I would like to receive the B & O CDX schematics also. This will help to save some time to locate the right parts, to fix the problems, and to restore the setting to standard. Thnaks in advance and looking to receive the schematic soon.
Regards, KT
Sure, I would like to receive the B & O CDX schematics also. This will help to save some time to locate the right parts, to fix the problems, and to restore the setting to standard. Thnaks in advance and looking to receive the schematic soon.
Regards, KT
cd104 or equiv. manual
If anyone has any schematics I would really love a copy (my email can handle over 10mb)
wahee@f2s.com
I have a .pdf of an article on how to troubleshoot common faults on this player. (unfortunately I need a service manual to fix one of the servo boards on one of my 104's)
thanks
here's a link to the .pdf
http://homepage.ntlworld.com/quad303/cd104/
If anyone has any schematics I would really love a copy (my email can handle over 10mb)
wahee@f2s.com
I have a .pdf of an article on how to troubleshoot common faults on this player. (unfortunately I need a service manual to fix one of the servo boards on one of my 104's)
thanks
here's a link to the .pdf
http://homepage.ntlworld.com/quad303/cd104/
update and possible cure
OK so I decided to have another look at my CD 104.
previously I had replaced the Opamps PSU caps with parts from my scrap bin (Elnas) and removed the DC blockers. I decided to put new caps (Stargels) in.
Previously the player seemed to need 15 minutes of power up before it would read the CD header.
While I had the decoder and servo boards out I noticed a couple of caps for which I had the right values. I decided I might as well replace them as they appeared to be providing decoupling for power.
One was a 47uF electrolytic roughly in the middle of the servo board. I replaced this with an elna of equivalent value
This was component 2209 based on the B&O CDX service manual
the other was a 150uF 6.3v electrolytic on the decoder board, again roughly central. This is part 2518 in the manual. here I used a 330uF OSCON.
Anyway I put it all back together , fired it up expecting to have to wait 15 minutes, and was surprised when it read the TOC straight away.
I listened and the player sounded fine.
For the last few mornings I've tested to see if the player will read ToC from cold and it does everytime.
NOW ....I'm quite prepared to accept that I may have reseated a poor connection accidently when disassembling/reassembling the unit, and it may drift back to it's old ways but so far so good. maybe the PSU to the servo board had an effect ?
may be worth a try
OK so I decided to have another look at my CD 104.
previously I had replaced the Opamps PSU caps with parts from my scrap bin (Elnas) and removed the DC blockers. I decided to put new caps (Stargels) in.
Previously the player seemed to need 15 minutes of power up before it would read the CD header.
While I had the decoder and servo boards out I noticed a couple of caps for which I had the right values. I decided I might as well replace them as they appeared to be providing decoupling for power.
One was a 47uF electrolytic roughly in the middle of the servo board. I replaced this with an elna of equivalent value
This was component 2209 based on the B&O CDX service manual
the other was a 150uF 6.3v electrolytic on the decoder board, again roughly central. This is part 2518 in the manual. here I used a 330uF OSCON.
Anyway I put it all back together , fired it up expecting to have to wait 15 minutes, and was surprised when it read the TOC straight away.
I listened and the player sounded fine.
For the last few mornings I've tested to see if the player will read ToC from cold and it does everytime.
NOW ....I'm quite prepared to accept that I may have reseated a poor connection accidently when disassembling/reassembling the unit, and it may drift back to it's old ways but so far so good. maybe the PSU to the servo board had an effect ?
may be worth a try
Re: update and possible cure
it's still working first time everytime. This weekend I worked on the decoder board . I do this by unscrewing the servo board and prising it open so I can work on the underside of the decoder. I swapped all the remaining electrolytics (mostly 22uF/35v) for oscons (22uF/20v - no voltages higher than -18v)
Put it all back together and sounds better than ever. Anyways it still worked first time, even after such major work. Hence I think those two earlier from my earlier post did the job.
jives11 said:
it's still working first time everytime. This weekend I worked on the decoder board . I do this by unscrewing the servo board and prising it open so I can work on the underside of the decoder. I swapped all the remaining electrolytics (mostly 22uF/35v) for oscons (22uF/20v - no voltages higher than -18v)
Put it all back together and sounds better than ever. Anyways it still worked first time, even after such major work. Hence I think those two earlier from my earlier post did the job.
Any advice for novice to get much loved 104 working again
I found my old CD104 in the loft today and tried to fire it up. I've owned it since new used it for about 5 years. It worked last time I had it out but now it doesn't play.
When I place a CD in I don't hear it spinning. The display shows all "0" then the "Error" light comes on and finally the display goes off.
I opened it up and head carrying the laser moves (pulses once) when when the power is turned on but, if a CD is place inside, the head and motor do nothing.
Can anyone suggest what could be the cause if this failure?
Thanks
I found my old CD104 in the loft today and tried to fire it up. I've owned it since new used it for about 5 years. It worked last time I had it out but now it doesn't play.
When I place a CD in I don't hear it spinning. The display shows all "0" then the "Error" light comes on and finally the display goes off.
I opened it up and head carrying the laser moves (pulses once) when when the power is turned on but, if a CD is place inside, the head and motor do nothing.
Can anyone suggest what could be the cause if this failure?
Thanks
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